One hundred and fifty years ago leaders of two powerful countries Russia and the USA-Emperor Alexander II (1818-1881) and President Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)-changed the course of global history. On February 19, 1861, Alexander II signed the Manifesto setting free 22 mln Russian serfs; the latter vesting himself with extraordinary powers, two years later signed the Declaration on Abolition of Slavery. These two milestones in the development of civilization were in the focus of the documentary exhibition "The Tsar and the President: Alexander II and Abraham Lincoln. The Liberator and the Emancipator", held under the auspices of the Bilateral US-Russia Presidential Committee of Medvedev and Obama at the Exposition Hall of the RF Federal Archives in February-March 2011. The unknown exhibits throwing light on the relations of two state leaders were first exhibited for some months in the USA within the framework of celebrations dedicated to the 200th birth anniversary of Lincoln. The exposition opened in the USA in the summer of 2008 acquainted visitors with a unique collection of personal belongings and documents of the 16th century connected with the host of the White House and the Russian monarch. Many residents of the New World discovered "Russian aspects" in Lincoln's biography and were really surprised by fruitful relations of two countries in the 19th century. The exhibition was initiated by the American-Russian Cultural Cooperation Foundation; archives, museums and private collections of both countries also greatly enriched the exposition. The project supervisors of studies were James стр. 64 Symington, President of the aforementioned foundation, and Sergei Mironenko, Dr. Sc. (Hist.), Director of the RF State Archives. They also arranged a similar exposition in Moscow. Major American museums, libraries, funds and private collections provided personal correspondence of two state leaders, photos, sculptures and portraits of Lincoln and his re ... Читать далее